The present application is directed to articulated toy figures having elements that are movable with respect to one another, and more particularly to toy figures which have a high degree of articulation but which nevertheless can be inexpenisvely produced without the traditional assembly operations.
There is a continuing demand for articulated figures in the toy field, and consequently several techniques for achieving articulation have been developed. A typical example is illustrated in FIG. 1, which illustrates a doll 10 having a head element 12, leg elements 14, arm elements 16, and body elements 18 and 20, all of which can be made of plastic. Shafts 22 terminated by disc portions 24 are molded into the plastic forming elements 12, 14, and 16. Body elements 18 and 20 are provided with semicircular recesses 26 into which the shafts 22 are disposed before body elements 18 and 20 are joined together, as with glue, screws, or a welding operation. Thus assembled, elements 12, 14 and 16 are allowed to rotate about their shafts 22 while being retained in position by disc portions 24.
The various plastic elements illustrated in FIG. 1 can be made by conventional injection molding techniques. Metal blocks which fit together into a single unit are machined to provide a mold having internal cavities whose configurations match those of the plastic elements to be produced. Molten plastic such as Nylon or styrene is injected into the cavities via small conduits in the mold. After the plastic hardens the metal blocks are separated and the plastic elements are removed, either manually or automatically by means of ejector pins which are movably mounted on the mold. Thereafter the mold is closed and the cycle is repeated to produce additional elements. Depending upon the size of the mold and the size and geometry of the plastic elements to be produced, the mold may have more than one internal cavity in order to produce more than one plastic element at a time. In such a situation, small conduits would be provided in the mold to convey molten plastic injected into the mold to each of the cavities, or conduits could lead from one cavity to another for this purpose. After the plastic hardens the molded elements remain connected by a plastic framework corresponding to the conduits, but the elements can easily be broken off of the framework to yield individual pieces. The small blemishes which result when elements are removed from the framework are usually insignificant.
The articulation of doll 10 is very limited. The arms and legs can sweep out arcs and the head can rotate, but movements that are more complex than this are not possible. The arms cannot be raised to the sides, the elbows do not flex, the wrist cannot be rotated, etc. Such limitations impart a corresponding limitation on the enjoyment that a child can derive from playing with the toy. Moreover, there is the danger that a child may become sufficiently frustrated that he breaks the doll by attempting to force a movement which the mechanism is incapable of permitting. Even with this limited articulation, however, doll 10 requires that seven elements be assembled during fabrication of the device. These assembly steps are a significant factor in the overall manufacturing cost. Techniques are known in the art for achieving a greater degree of articulation, as by providing ball-and-socket joints or hinging elements together, but such techniques increase the number of elements that must be assembled and further complicate the assembly process. Accordingly, in the prior art highly articulated figures are associated with correspondingly high manufacturing costs. Moreover, highly articulated figures tend to be delicate because of the number of individual pieces which must be assembled together.